LEGAZPI CITY –– At least 15,852 families (57,793 people) living in areas prone to floods, landslides, and storm surges in Bicol were moved to safer grounds Sunday.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in Bicol said Catanduanes, Albay, Camarines Sur, and Sorsogon provinces implemented pre-emptive evacuation as Typhoon “Bising” (international name Surigae) continues to pour moderate to heavy rains over the region since Sunday.
As of 4 a.m., the state weather bureau placed Catanduanes, the eastern towns of Albay, Sorsogon, and Camarines Sur under storm signal no. 2, while the rest of Bicol were under signal no. 1
Gremil Alexis Naz, OCD Bicol spokesperson, said Monday that as of 7 p.m. on Sunday, Albay had 9,833 families (35,054 people) evacuated from low-lying and coastal areas.
In Catanduanes, 5,109 families, or 19,119 people, were evacuated while 835 families or 3,351 people in Camarines Sur and 75 families or 369 people in Sorsogon left their homes to take shelter in evacuation centers.
The Philippine Coast Guard said 956 sea travelers, 227 trucks, three buses, and 94 cars remained stranded along with seven sea vessels in various ports.
Meanwhile, 87 trucks bound for the Visayas and Mindanao were still grounded in a queue along the highway stretch in Barangay Putiao, Pilar town in Sorsogon.